Fishbone & Ishikawa Diagram Templates

Get easy and customizable fishbone and cause and effect templates

The Easy Choice for Fishbone and Ishikawa Templates Online

Easy to Use

Start with a built-in fishbone template and simple commands. SmartDraw will build your fishbone diagram for you. Add or remove a cause and SmartDraw realigns and arranges all the elements so that your diagram continues to look great.

Easy to Work With Other Apps

SmartDraw is easy to work with no matter what other apps you use. You can add fishbone diagrams to:

  • Microsoft Office®
    • Word®
    • PowerPoint®
    • Excel®
  • Microsoft Teams®
  • Google Workspace
    • Google Docs
    • Google Sheets
  • Atlassian apps
    • Confluence
    • Jira

Easy to Save to Your Existing Storage Solution

SmartDraw works hand in glove with most file storage systems. You can save your fishbone diagrams directly to:

  • SharePoint®
  • OneDrive®
  • Google Drive
  • DropBox®
  • Box®

There is no need to create a parallel set of common folders and permissions, SmartDraw can just save files directly into your existing set up.

Easy to Share

Share your fishbone diagram with anyone, even if they don't own a copy of SmartDraw, with a link. You can also easily export any diagram as a PDF or common image formats like PNG or SVG.

Easy to Share

Easy to Get Help

Have a question? Chat or email us. SmartDraw support is in-house and free!

Easy to Get Help

Fishbone & Ishikawa Diagram Templates and Examples

Start your fishbone diagram with one of SmartDraw's built-in fishbone examples and templates.

Learn More About Fishbone Diagrams

What is a Fishbone Diagram?

A fishbone diagram is also known as an Ishikawa diagram. It is a visual tool that can help better understand potential causes of an event. The name, fishbone diagram, comes from its shape, which looks like the skeleton of a fish. The head of the fish usually represents the problem or effect, while the arrangement of potential causes of the problem resembles the spine of the fish. Fishbone diagram templates help teams analyze and understand all factors that contribute to the issue at hand, while aiding in the problem-solving process.

Fishbone diagram template

How to Make a Fishbone Diagram in SmartDraw

  1. Start by naming the main problem or event. This usually goes at the head of the "fish" in your diagram.
  2. Make categories for causes and create the "bone structure" of your fish. Common categories include: people, methods, measurements, materials, machines and environment.
  3. List possible causes under each category including variations in a process or design.
  4. Insert your completed fishbone diagram into any report or presentation.
Simple fishbone diagram

Benefits of Using a Fishbone Diagram Template

Using a fishbone diagram allows you to see all the causes and details on a higher level at a glance. You and your team can more effectively find the root cause of a problem and propose better solutions.

Fishbone diagram example

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3M logo
Amazon logo
AT&T logo
Cisco logo
Honeywell logo
Intel logo
Johnson and Johnson logo
Mariott logo
Abbott Labs logo
Motorola logo
Northrop Grumman logo
Oracle logo
Pfizer logo
Thermo Fisher Scientific logo
Verizon logo
Wells Fargo logo

Try SmartDraw's Fishbone Templates Free

Discover why SmartDraw is the best app for fishbone templates today.

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